Flagler County’s unemployment rate reached 14.7 percent in July. Flagler County has also been affected by an increasing number of wild fires mostly caused by lightning. The largest of these has been the Española fire, which covered 5,136 acres.

Governor Rick Scott has not promised any state funding to Flagler County– but he did promise to assist local leaders by eliminating the red tape that gets in the way of progress. Governor Scott plans to eliminate more than 1,000 regulations this year, and wants a quicker turnaround on permit requests.

An example of red tape affecting Flagler County has been Flagler Beach City’s efforts to mitigate beach erosion, while having to deal with three different state agencies– the Dept., of Transportation, the Dept., of Environmental Protection and the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

A smaller more effective government with less burdensome regulations encourages investment, private sector growth and job creation– which is Governor Scott’s objective. An example that Washington should follow.